The triangle

All of us have had this conversation:

‘Mom, I want to do Art in college.’

‘But, honey, wouldn’t you rather be a dentist?’

‘No, I want to draw and paint.’

‘But how will you pay the bills?’

I was lucky enough to know it was going on in my parents mind, but never really had the conversation: they said I should do what made me happy.  I have had my lot of weird glances from other people, though,  for responding ‘Art Degree’ to anyone asking what I was doing in college.  ‘‘ BFA? Wow! That’s amazing! But how will you get a job?’’  I heard that last one thousands of times.  My own grandmother, who did Art School in the 40s, always told me all artists die poor.

This frustrated me to the highest level, and as long as I can remember, I have had that ‘I’ll show you!’ subconscious reaction which translated into peaks of emotion  in my chest, as if my heart wanted to pull out and scream:   ‘‘ You are SO wrong! ’’ .

Art is a calling, the same way being a doctor or a research biologist is.  We don’t do it for the money, and that is that. We should be saying to all who doubt what we do to go on with their lives and stop worrying about us. 

If I have learned something over the last 2 years (yeah, it’s been this long since I graduated), it’s that you need to find balance. This balance is fragile yet achievable.  This is what I call artsy living; it is the series of choices or ways of life you take on to make your dream accessible.

Let’s start with the basics and be overly intellectual about this.

An art career, and by extension artsy living,  can be summarized into a triangle, as many things in life can.  Just like fire needs oxygen, something to consume and heat to burn,  to successfully persue an art career, you need three things:

Take one away, and away goes this wonderful dream of yours. 

The first thing I will add is that the cash mention does not mean you need to be rich or marry for the money; it merely means you need to be sheltered, fed, clothed, and sometimes go out with friend to enjoy what you have and their company. Basically, you need the kind of money that will keep you HEALTHY, mentally and physically.  You could refer yourself to the Maslow hierachy of needs ( yet another triangle) to illustrate my point : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs.

The cash, to me, takes care of the two first levels, and permits the third. A little money permits you to  go out with your friends every once in a while and enjoy it, which will not be the case if you are hungry ( if you are like me you’ll probably spend the extra money to buy a piece of clothing for your niece, which she absolutely does not need). Wether you like it or not, you need to see your family. Personaly, it costs me 20 dollars to go back to my hometown. I need these 20 dollars.  After the social needs, in Maslow's triangle, comes self-esteem, which is crucial for any entrepreneur, and on the last level, creativity. It is common knowledge you have to get your basic needs out of the way if you want to start creating, wether you are an artist or not.

I have an appartment I love and a studio I rent monthly, I  eat very well and I am not rich. I simply have tricks and make choices ( which I will discuss in other posts) to enable me to have a creative space and fill this need I have to draw and paint.  

The second point is time. Time to create, time to breathe, the time spent at work, the time you need to take care of yourself and others, boyfriend or girlfriend  time (if you're in a couple)... So many things and so little time. I always said days should have 48 hours. Then again, we’d want 72. Time management is a big issue for artists; many blogs and books are available to you to find that perfect balance between your passion and your everyday obligations. However, they are not all effective.

The third ( but far from least) element  is really hard work. It’s no secret. Artists who make it are the tough ones. Remember that.